


Little Talks

by RainyDaysWriter



Category: Mystic Messenger (Video Game)
Genre: F/M, RFA Party, post-secret endings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-08
Updated: 2018-06-08
Packaged: 2019-05-09 05:35:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,716
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14710103
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RainyDaysWriter/pseuds/RainyDaysWriter
Summary: Crushes are hard, even for ex-secret agents.





	Little Talks

The RFA party was in full swing; glasses clinked, laughter rolled in from all directions, someone seemed to be shouting Tyrenol at the top of their lungs. What appeared to be an actual mummy shambled up to a vampire, who held his cape up in the most stereotypical fashion. Vanderwood wondered if this wasn't some elaborate prank developed by the members as some sort of test. They had the money, resources, and connections. Despite this, Saeyoung remained incredibly casual, clapping him on the back and saying, "If you want to leave early, give me a holler!"

"What about your brother?"

Saeyoung visibly brightened as his attention flickered over to Saeran, who was chuckling as Yoosung gestured wildly about something. The college kid had made fast friends with Saeran, much to everyone's surprise and relief. "Aw, he won’t be stranded. He’d hitch a ride with Yoosung or Zen."

"He’s adjusting alright, then?"

"Yeah. We’re taking it day by day, you know?" Saeyoung turned to face Vanderwood fully, warm expression shifting into something more playful, something that had Vanderwood instinctively bracing himself for. "What about you? Are you learning to enjoy yourself yet? Missing my company?" he added slyly with an over exaggerated wink.

"It’s hard to miss you when I still talk to you through the messenger almost every day."

Saeyoung waggled his eyebrows. "It's addicting, isn't it?"

Rolling his eyes, Vanderwood said, "I'll admit, I assumed it was solely for party planning. I didn't expect everyone to be so laid back. The amount of selfies and cat photos that go through a single chat room is astonishing."

"You know, that's what Jaehee said at first, too. But she has no problems with Zen's pics . . ." Saeyoung gave a hapless sigh and shrugged. "Well, what can you do if some people just don’t have the same love for cats as I do? Oh, hey!" He elbowed Vanderwood's side. "Look at who’s on her way over."

It was the coy way Saeyoung said it that made him instantly alert. And sure enough, there you were, weaving through the throngs of people. A bright smile lit up your face when you caught his eye, near damning him with how much he hoped it was reserved for him. He stood taller and reached up to straighten his tie, feeling very much like he'd tazed himself.

It occurred to him to meet you halfway too late. Your expression tightened into one of polite interest as a guest appeared in your path, and you cast an apologetic look over their shoulder. He lifted a hand in return, lips twitching with barely withheld disappointment as the guest led you away.

" _Oh._ " Saeyoung made a pleased hum.

"What?" he groused, crossing his arms.

"If I didn’t know any better," Saeyoung said, voice dropping as if he were sharing a deadly secret, "I’d bet my fastest baby that you _like_ our precious coordinator."

His heart stuttered. On instinct, he scoffed, shoving his hands into his pockets. "Of course I like her. Anyone who can deal with so many characters and still keep sane deserves my respect." _Respect, admiration, half of my waking thoughts._ God, what an understatement. He couldn't go half an hour without wanting to talk to you on the messenger, but then it was never enough. He wanted to hear your voice, your laugh. So much of his life had been spent lurking beneath the radar as a tool, was it so wrong for him to drift towards you when you offered such _normalcy_? When you went through hell and back for people you hardly knew, and kept Saeyoung from totally destroying himself in the process?

And the fact that you reached out to him so often, asking after him, and, dare he assume, _flirted_ with him.

"Huh." That smug cat’s grin only widened, glasses glinting in the chandelier light. Jesus, the kid was too observant for his own good. "She _is_ a great gal. But that isn’t how I meant it, and you know it," he sang, one arm resting over Vanderwood’s. "We’re friends, aren’t we?"

"I’m almost insulted you have to ask."

"So then, allow me to give you some advice. Straight from the mouth of God Seven himself." This time Saeyoung dipped his head, lifting a hand to cup his mouth to complete the charade of warding off eavesdroppers. "Go talk to her."

"What." Vanderwood lifted his brows. "That’s it? No wild scheme or cat analogy?"

Saeyoung chuckled, scooped up two passing glasses of wine, and held them out. "My messenger does wonders, but eventually you have to break that fourth wall yourself and talk face-to-face."

Vanderwood took the glasses and frowned. "Fourth wall?"

Saeyoung rolled his eyes, as if it were all painfully obvious. "I’m not a wizard. There are some things you should do yourself, instead of wishing for everything to turn out your way. You're free to make your own plan of action now, Madam."

"I have no idea what you’re going on about now."

"I'm _saying_ move your leopard-print loving ass before someone else does."

"You-" He was caught between chewing out Saeyoung over whatever the hell kind of insult that was and latching onto the last bit. Someone else. Was there someone else? He didn't know much about your life outside of the RFA. You had a job, you surely had friends and family outside this bubble he'd only just been introduced into. What if there was another person? A coworker? An actual partner? No, Saeyoung of all people would know that from the very first inspection of you.

"You aren't getting any younger," Saeyoung sang.

Vanderwood shot him an unimpressed look before inhaling deeply and strode forward.

He was saved from awkwardly hovering until your conversation finished when he caught your eye approaching. You politely peeled yourself away from the group, meeting him halfway, shoulders sagging with relief. Maybe he’d saved you from an overwhelming interaction. A lot of the guests attending the party were . . . Abnormal, to say the least.

"Vanderwood," you greeted, eyes wide, "I didn't expect to see you here tonight! I'm glad you came."

The corners of his lips tugged upward. Be relaxed, don't freak her out. This wasn't the agency, she was a civilian. "Glad to be here. Drink?"

He handed you the glass, admiring the effervescent glow dancing across your features. Since the events at that cult, Vanderwood had interacted with you almost solely through the app. Laying low while he and Saeyoung dealt with the aftermath of their disappearance from the agency had left little time for real talk.

But now here he was, and here you were dressed up and expressing genuine joy at his presence . . . Wow. "You look nice." Nailed it.

"Well, thank you." Your eyes dipped to his chest. "You look dashing, yourself. Is purple your favorite color?"

He pushed back his bangs, looking down at the purple and white ensemble with a little embarrassment. It held up to Saeyoung’s “keen” eye for fashion, and it wasn’t like he himself hadn’t had to attend a few parties for missions . . . "I don’t know if I have a favorite color, but I thought I’d save the leopard print suit for another time."

You laughed behind your hand. "I’ll be looking forward to seeing it. I have a feeling the parties will only get bigger from here on out, so a leopard print suit will fit right in."

"I should've known this wasn't even scratching the surface."

"I mean, this is only my second party I've helped coordinate, and the first I actually attended, so . . . we're kind of in the same boat here."

"I couldn't tell. You make it look easy."

"Thanks. Good to know I don't look as nervous as I feel. It’s still a little much for me." You leaned back against the wall and gazed out at the crowd with a soft sigh. "But at least everyone is enjoying themselves."

Vanderwood nodded, but there was a tenseness below the surface of your words. He knew stress intimately enough to recognize the tells. Swirling the contents of his glass, he said, "Maybe you should take a vacation after this. I think you’ve more than earned it, all things considered."

"Hah, really?" You considered it for a moment. "I won’t lie, having a full night’s sleep without worrying for anyone’s safety or missing out on some important news sounds heavenly."

"Is there any place you’ve thought about visiting?"

You hummed, looking at the ceiling and cocking your head. "I think . . . anywhere warm and sunny will do. With a beach and a nice shopping district too." A warm smile bloomed across your face, releasing a swarm of butterflies right into his gut.

He took a big sip of wine.

"What about you? You’re planning a vacation soon, yeah?"

"Somewhere without cellphone service."

You laughed, shoulders rising as you did. "Oh man, that sounds good. Add that to my list too."

Now he was sure it wasn’t the wine. The warmth in his cheeks was thanks to you. "We might end up at the same place if we aren’t careful."

"Aw, that doesn’t sound too bad to me! If I were going somewhere with anyone, I would love for it to be you." Your eyes suddenly widened and you averted your gaze to the floor. That hadn’t meant to come out, then.

Normally, he’d be more than willing to skim over slip ups for the other person’s sake. But the way you were fidgeting made him bold. At least he wasn't the only one nervous in this. "Me, huh? Why’s that?"

You blinked, not quite meeting his eye but attempting to smile. "Oh, um, lots of reasons! Like, you’re neat so there probably wouldn’t be a scramble to find tickets or passports, ha. And then you’re pretty relaxed, so you would actually enjoy a vacation instead of using it as more time to work . . . Plus, getting to know each other away from the craziness . . . Um."

He couldn't contain his amusement. "I'm neat?"

You pressed your fingers to your forehead and groaned. "It’s a miracle I could get so many guests here, I know."

"No, actually, the more I get to know you, the more I understand how you made such an impact on Saeyoung."

"For real?" You peeked back at him again from the corner of your eye. He swallowed, heat creeping up his neck.

With a blase shrug, he nodded. "Even when shit absolutely hit the fan, you kept your head. I've seen people break under pressure too many times to count, and usually take a few others with them, but you . . . Honestly, there were moments when I wondered if you weren’t an undercover agent with how well you dealt with it all."

A shy little laugh bubbled from your lips. "Considering that I was running on nearly two weeks of no sleep?"

He grinned. "A hallmark trait of agents."

"Is that so? And here I was thinking Saeyoung was an outlier."

"I think we can agree that he's still an outlier."

A brief laugh at Saeyoung's expense and then the conversation ebbed. _Damn it what now?_ He tugged at his cuffs, scanning the room to find something else to go on about. More than a few sets of eyes were settled on you . . . and him by proximity. These guests were just as nosy as Saeyoung, but at least the kid knew when not to be so goddamn obvious about it!

A hand settling on his arm, snapping him from a glower. "Hey, would you want to step out for a second?" you whispered. "I need a break."

"Um . . . Yes?" He cleared his throat. "I mean, yeah lead the way."

Your hand slipped into his, and it was like a jolt of electricity went through his heart. He lagged behind for a second in shock before quickly falling into step with you. The smile that bloomed on your face was one he wanted to imprint in his head, so every time he closed his eyes it would be all he saw.

You led him down the corridor to a set of doors that, when he opened, revealed a lounging area with floor-to-ceiling windows, plush seating, and a chandelier practically the size of the moon. He couldn’t believe he never thought twice about the RFA and their parties, that Saeyoung would be part of something so grand.

And now he was part of it, too. With you.

Your eyes glittered. "Gotta hand it to Jumin, he doesn’t skimp on anything."

"He does seem like the type to go above and beyond." He let out a low whistle at the skyline view.

"Gleaned that from his cat projects?" you joked, closing the doors.

"My heart aches for Assistant Kang."

You plopped down on the loveseat, toeing off your shoes with a relieved sigh and set your drink onto the end table. "I don’t know how she does it. So, um, are you alright?"

"Me?" Well, if you kept staring at him like that he wouldn't be. He settled next to you, an arm's length away. "What do you mean?"

"You were looking kind of flushed back there, I get if you're not used to being . . . in the spotlight."

"Yeah, ha. I'm more of a private sort of person." That's not the only reason he was flustered . . . 

"So then you're probably careful about who you spend your time with, huh?"

"That's true, but I don't completely shut people out."

"I hope I'm not one of those people."

He blinked. "You most certainly are not. I consider you someone who I can open up to, actually." He turned, draping his arm over the back of the couch. "You're someone who I want to know." 

Your lips parted in surprise for a beat, as if you hadn't expected such candor. But your voice was even as you said, "I'd love to know you, too. Who is the real Vanderwood? How's he take his coffee, if at all?"

Tilting his head, he lifted his brows. "That's some pretty intimate stuff. Are you sure you can handle it? Wouldn't want to scare you off."

He was rewarded with another bought of laughter from you.

"I have a feeling I can handle whatever you throw my way, Vanderwood. Coffee preferences or otherwise."

"Huh, then you wouldn't be opposed to getting drinks together?"

"Nothing would make me happier." 

A sharp rap at the door had Vanderwood practically jumping to his feet, heart in his throat and fingers fumbling at his waist for his Tazer. In the time it was taking him to pull back into reality, to remember that this was a party and not a mission, you swept past him with a reassuring brush of the shoulder that grounded him. He dropped his hand, face burning.

You opened the door without hesitation, pleasant and polite as you greeted the nondescript woman. None of the flirtiness from before. The woman was quick as she spoke, informing you that your presence was required in the closing ceremony, then she was gone again.

When you turned back around, you slumped like a puppet with slackened strings. "Well, back into the fray," you sighed, returning to step back into your shoes with a half-grimace. You took his offered arm to balance with.

"You're the star of the show, they would've caught us eventually," he said, trying to make light of the disappointment settling in his gut. 

"Star of the show is a little much," you quipped, "more like I'm one leg of the table."

He snorted. "Sure. A very desirable table leg."

You crinkled your nose. "Was that a compliment? We may have to work on those before getting drinks."

"Gladly." 

"Hey . . ." Your hand lightly squeezed his bicep, and even with a layer separating your skin from his, the touch sent electricity coursing through his veins. God, he was really in deep, wasn't he? "Thanks for keeping me company tonight."

"I feel like I should be thanking you, though. For giving me a chance to be me." He outwardly cringed. "Jesus, I'm not this cheesy, am I?"

"Hey, I for one am ready to accept the real you, cheesy lines, weird compliments, and all."

He chuckled, pulling you closer to his side. "Let's get you back before Saeyoung starts any rumors."

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed this! ^_^ Inspired by a friend's adoration for Vandy, reifromrfa on tumblr! Go check her out for some great MM content! And also thank you to monotonemandy for giving this a look over when I got stuck!


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